DBSync provides on-demand software as a service (SAAS) solutions that integrate and synchronize critical accounting, CRM, ERP, databases and Healthcare apps that your business relies on.
Whether you are a B2C, D2C, B2B, or B2G company, you create SaaS data that falls under privacy laws. Although there is no one-size-fits-all data privacy approach, companies should understand how this data is being collected, used, retained, and safeguarded across their organization and with their partners. Companies should also leverage the fields/attributes offered by their SaaS apps. For example, Salesforce offers data fields such as “Block Geolocation Tracking”, “Don’t Process Preference” and “Don’t Profile Preference”.
Key Questions: SaaS Data Backup and Privacy
Commercially available SaaS data backup and replication solutions are also evolving to provide richer data management tools to meet these requirements. But before you consider or reconsider your SaaS backup solution, you should ask yourself these key questions:
Do you know your SaaS apps’ data privacy fields/attributes?
Have you created customs fields, rules, and reports to meet the requirements?
Are the proper data workflows in place both for internal and external processing?
Has the data been combined with other sets of data?
If you had to delete a customer’s records, would you be confident that you are meeting privacy requirements?
From the ever-evolving CCPA requirements to GDPR, COPPA and HIPAA, leveraging backup and replication these tools can help make the process easier. One key way SaaS backup solutions are helping to meet regulations is the one-click “Right to Be Forgotten” feature found in many of today’s solutions. It allows database admins to remove the needed data across not only the current backup but all iterations.
Other tools can help you to replicate only the data needed, based on your anonymization requirements, before it hits your data lakes, data warehouses or other systems for BI, AI or ML initiatives. Understanding your data, where it propagates and how much should be ported over to systems is now arguably the greatest challenge of data stewards.
Partnering with Data Management App Providers
Why not also have a conversation with your data management solutions provider? They may have run into the same challenges with other customers and can share some best practices from their work in the field.
The company’s move up on the Financial Times’ list for 2021 highlights the company’s growth and reflects the digital transformation occurring across many industries.
Brentwood, TN, April 13, 2021 — DBSync LLC, a leading SaaS data management platform, has received the ranking of #434 on the Financial Times (FT) list of The Americas’ Fastest Growing Companies 2021, moving up from position #476. This recognition comes from the FT and Statista Inc., the world-leading statistics portal and industry ranking provider.
The FT Americas’ Fastest Growing Companies list ranks companies with the strongest compounded annual revenue growth between 2016 and 2019. DBSync grew more than 27% during that period, with an absolute growth rate of over 107%. The company’s growth results from expanding its market share for existing SaaS integration apps and SaaS data replication solutions, along with the introduction of new apps to its SaaS data management platform.
The company continued to grow the platform in 2020 and has an aggressive product roadmap for 2021. The company’s newest additions to the platform include new SaaS integration apps for eCommerce to power the data workflows between apps such as Shopify and WooCommerce to fulfillment, CRM and financial systems. The company also added its SaaS Backup for Salesforce solution in 2020.
About the Financial Times
The Financial Times (FT) is one of the world’s leading business news organizations, recognized internationally for its authority, integrity, and accuracy. The FT has a paying readership of more than a million worldwide, three-quarters of which are digital subscriptions. FT is part of Nikkei Inc., which provides a broad range of information, news, and services for the global business community. For more information, visit www.ft.com.
About DBSync
DBSync unleashes the power of Automation, liberating DataOps and DevOps from difficult, manual and repetitive tasks, giving organizations more time to pursue their dreams and achieve higher goals. The company develops and markets its data workflow, replication and backup solutions in partnership with leading providers of CRM, finance, ERP and e-Commerce apps as well as SQL and NoSQL databases, data services and data platforms. With easy-to-use pre-built connectors and ETL capabilities, DBSync provides easy links between leading cloud-based and on-premise solutions, enabling better compliance, insights and decisions. The company has offices in Nashville, San Francisco and Bangalore, India.
As SaaS data management solutions evolve to meet the market's growing data management and data endpoint needs, the lines are becoming blurred between SaaS backup and replication. The following summarizes the typical SaaS backup and replication features that you are likely to encounter on the market and where these lines become blurred.
Some of the reasons for the market's evolving needs include the movement towards digitizing businesses, reflected in the increases of SaaS and cloud adoption, along with increasingly ambitious business continuity goals and more demanding regulations. Some key data goals may include:
Optimizing DataOps and DevOps time and resources
Creating a unified view of the companies data and customers
Seeding data lakes and warehouses for analysis
Meeting privacy regulations
Meeting financial regulations
Meeting business continuity RTO and RPO goals
Project-specific goals such as migrations and enhancing systems
SaaS backup solutions provide DataOps with a tool that will automate their backups and make it easy for them to recover their data, metadata, and other assets such as files. A non-technical user should be reasonably comfortable navigating the solution. The main goals of the backup app are to meet compliance, audit, and business continuity goals. The data's endpoints are usually limited to a public or private cloud, necessitating a replication solution should the company need an on-premise self-hosted solution. What you will typically find as features:
Scheduled/automated daily backups of data, metadata, and other assets such as files
Reporting to indicate changes between backups
Comparison tools to investigate changes
An audit trail to validate compliance
"Forget Me" tools to meet privacy regulations
The ability to easily and quickly recover data from the backups to meet your RTO goals
When the Lines Blur Between SaaS Data Backup and Replication
The lines become blurred between commercially available products (backup and replication) when the demand for the frequency of backups increases, additional data endpoints are needed or data use becomes more diverse. Unfortunately, this sometimes requires a bit of digging and doesn't always yield a perfect vendor-to-vendor comparison which may include charges for additional data storage and API calls. The following section will highlight the typical replication features available commercially.
As your data usage or endpoints needed become more complex, the products you will find more useful become SaaS data replication solutions.
When you want to do more with your data than back it up, then you will be drawn to SaaS data replication solutions. These may be additional features from SaaS data backup providers or a unique product line from a SaaS data management company. The solution helps to get the right data to the right business unit, regardless of geography, reliably and consistently. What does that mean?
Similar to backups, replicating SaaS data can ensure that, if one system fails, data can easily be recovered from another location. With data replication, it can also reduce your RTO since the data can be replicated to a local server. Replication can certainly boost your ability to meet business continuity goals and regulatory mandates, but, because of those additional endpoints and automated schema updates, it can do much more. SaaS data replication solution can power a companies analysis by populating data lakes and warehouses on a frequency of your choosing. It also finds application in enhancing or testing system performance to help with IT decision-making. These are some of the typical feature you can expect to find.
Flexible frequency and scheduling
Multiple endpoints (SQL, NoSQL, public cloud, private cloud and on-premise)
The Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) industry continues to grow in leaps and bounds — predictions suggesting that the market could grow to $157 billion in 2020.
While SaaS empowers companies to move smarter and faster at affordable prices, it also leaves data prone to cyber-attacks that could result in lost data.
Is Your Data Safe?
Estimates suggest that at least 80% of businesses using SaaS have lost their data at some point. It’s expected that by 2021, 3 out of 4 companies will use SaaS to power up their critical applications — these numbers are symbolic of the growing need to protect Saas data.
Many SaaS vendors don’t provide protection for your data — Salesforce, Microsoft and Google all provide limited (or no) support for data recovery, as evidenced in their company statements:
1. Salesforce no longer to provide data recovery
2. Microsoft Services Agreement claims no liability for any disruptions or losses
Microsoft Services Agreement. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2020, from https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/servicesagreement/
3. Google claims no recovery if customers delete the data
Inevitably, the biggest cause of data loss is a human error — as high as 64%, according to some estimates. The figures and example below illustrate the threat:
The biggest causes of data loss
Source: Aberdeen group
The benefit of a replication solution is that it can help you compare your data before and after errors are noticed and see all of the changes that have been made. Thus, you can quickly check mistakes and rectify them, recovering all lost data. Replication is used for data recovery to ensure accurate and adequate security exists to ward against system breaches or software/hardware failure where data is compromised.
2. Hackers
As noted earlier, the SaaS market is forecasted to see $157 billion in revenue in 2020 — these numbers have caught the interest of hackers, as illustrated below by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA) incident below:
The CPA disclosed that a cyberattack against its website allowed unauthorized third parties to access the personal information of over 329,000 members and other stakeholders.
CPA Canada discloses data breach affecting 329,000 individuals. (n.d.). BleepingComputer. Retrieved September 8, 2020, from https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/cpa-canada-discloses-data-breach-affecting-329-000-individuals/
Archiving your data with Cloud Replication helps you comply with regulations and requirements. The “snapshot-based tracking” can help you to maintain data compliance regulations.
3.System failure
Just as humans are prone to errors, so are systems. While machines can greatly reduce the risk of individual human error, data can still be compromised/corrupted without warning, potentially leading to all your vital data vanishing at once. The consequences are beyond imagination!
Data replication stores your data on multiple sites or nodes which increases the availability of data even in adverse situations like system failure. By moving your data to different sources, you can make sure that your data is continuously available. Thus, even in a “system crash” scenario, you will have access to all of your relevant data and can keep going.
Backup vs Replication
Backups copy and restore data to ensure original data is not lost in the case of human/system error. Even if backups are run hourly, they cannot ensure the continuity of business at a time of data loss, as it may take hours, even days, to recover the data because it is stored offsite.
Replication copies and moves data to different sources/sites, making recovery faster, as data is retrieved quickly and at a granular level, allowing organizations to back on track in half of the time or less than backup solutions.
Because we live in an increasingly data-centric world, businesses cannot afford to compromise on the availability of data nor the level of security required to protect it. Today’s business model requires an “always-on” level of service which cannot be delivered by a backup solution.
What Exactly is Replication?
Data replication is the process of keeping data at different locations, creating multiple copies of it that can be stored at various sources to make certain it is protected from loss or theft. Replication increases the accessibility of data by giving access to all users at the same time, irrespective of their location.
Depending on need, replication can be done once or on an ongoing basis. The dynamic nature of data necessitates flexibility and convenience, making replication even more vital in today’s business world where information must be shared instantly and globally to multiple audiences.
Types of Data Replication
Transactional replication
In a transactional replication, the software makes a complete copy of the original data and updates it as it changes. Data is replicated in real time from its origin to the receiver database. This type of replication guarantees transactional consistency. This is most significant as the number of rows copied each time is smaller.
Snapshot replication
When the snapshot replication method is used, data is replicated exactly as it appears originally and is not monitored for updates. The entire snapshot is generated and sent to the user. This method is generally preferred when data changes only occasionally, because it requires the slower process of moving multiple records from one end to the other.
Merge Replication
Merge replication allows publisher and subscriber to change data dynamically. It is the most complex form of replication as data from two or more databases is merged together to form one database. It allows users to send changes from publisher to multiple subscribers.
Key-based Incremental Replication
This type of replication is also referred to as “key-based data capture,” as it only copies data changed from the last update. In this method, keys can be seen as elements that exist within the database and trigger data replication. Only a few rows are copied at a time, which makes it the most cost-effective replication method of all.
Advantages of Data Replication
Replication not only protects your data from a variety of threats but also provides a number of advantages:
Better Reliability and Availability: Since data is present at different locations, if one system fails, data can easily be recovered from another location.
Lower Data Access Latency: As data is available at multiple locations, the required data can be accessed from a closer location to where the transaction is being executed.
Power Analytic Support: Making data from different sources available to a data warehouse empowers different teams to work together on a common project for business intelligence.
Enhance Test System Performance: Because replication simplifies the synchronization and distribution of data, it creates quick access to data for testing, which allows for faster decision making.
What We Do at DBSync
At DBSync, we provide you with a simple and cost-effective way to replicate your Salesforce data. Our cloud replication can automatically create Salesforce object schemas, replicate objects in real-time, and create or update Salesforce records from your database irrespective of platforms like AWS, Windows, Azure, Docker, or Linux. Further, our product:
Fulfills All Compliance and Security Requirements Archiving your cloud application data with Cloud Replication helps you comply with FINRA and other regulations/requirements. Snapshot-based tracking means you stay on top of the latest regulatory requirements (i.e. versioning).
Requires Zero Administration – Set It and Forget It Automatic schema creation and adjustment means zero effort on mapping schemas. The ability to run database queries on Salesforce data reduces API usage and query latency.
It is Easy to Use No API experience? No Problem! Download the data directly and manipulate it from the database to see updates right in your CRM.
Can Be Deployed and Run Anywhere Support for the cloud (AWS) and on-premise database backup (Oracle, SQL Server, MySQL, Snowflake, etc), allows you to run data replication in batches or in real-time increments.
Allows for Adoption of Salesforce With Your AWS and Big Data Cloud Replication’s support for Cassandra, Amazon Redshift, MongoDB, and S3 helps you to harness the power of Big Data for your business.
Conclusion
It is easy to see the valuable impact SaaS has and continues to have, on the way we currently do business. However, as shown, this brings with it the increased risk of data loss — either by employee error, system failure, or malicious intent — that can hamper the flow and productivity of any business. The best defense: DBsync’s Cloud Replication tool. Be safe, not sorry! Arm yourself against data loss and sleep soundly at night knowing you are well-protected.
Today’s Salesforce users have more options than ever when integrating customer data with eCommerce, accounting, customer service and marketing SaaS apps. Companies quickly see the advantage as they reduce duplicate entries, helping to optimize the order-to-cash cycle. They can also gain that 360-degree view of customers, putting them heads and shoulders above the competition.
Even with all these options, dataops still hit Salesforce data workflow limitations due to inflexible integration templates and untracked changes to Salesforce metadata. This is especially true when working with SQL and NoSQL databases.
The challenges of cloud-to-SQL or other on-premise connections can have a company looking to devops and APIs for their integration solution. A third option is to leverage commercially available Salesforce data replication apps. These apps can keep your customer experience, operational and/or ERP systems up-to-date without having to pull on your devops resources or APIS.
Salesforce to SQL Database Integration Using iPaaS (Connectors)
The benefits of many data workflow solutions are they are no code and templated solutions. This empowers users to create data workflows with little to no coding knowledge quickly. The downside is the templated workflows usually are limited to the objects and fields included in those templates by the app provider.
Have custom objects or fields? Some Salesforce integration data workflow apps will allow you to create your own template. So the problem is solved. Right? Not necessarily. Even if you are diligent in keeping your templates up to date, that doesn’t mean your SQL database is up-to-date. You will need to understand how to keep your SQL database synced to include any changes to your structure/metadata.
Salesforce to SQL Database Integration Using Replication Apps
An easier way and more reliable way to connect Salesforce data to your SQL database is through a commercially available Salesforce data replication app. These commercially available apps let you skip the API and coding to replicate your Salesforce data to an SQL or NoSQL database.
DBSync’s Salesforce Replication app takes the experience one step further by offering an SQL interface that makes it an intuitive experience for SQL data admins. This app provides the peace of mind that data is replicated reliably with minimal upkeep.
If you are working on a data lake or warehouse project that leverages Salesforce data, download our SaaS brief that highlights how to overcome the challenges.
Public companies and financial organizations face many compliance requirements driven by external regulations or internal requirements. These have far-reaching impacts on IT’s data management and record retention strategies.
To meet these mandates, publicly traded companies, their audit firms, wealth management firms and brokers need to keep abreast of requirements while minimizing the impact on DataOps and DevOps. The following delves into some of these data management challenges.
Data and Record Retention for Corporations and Auditors, Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act Compliance
Not a new regulation but one that changed how businesses operate, SOX was enacted in 2002 in the aftermath of Enron and many other financial scandals of the era. The scandals called into question how much investors could trust companies and their independent auditors. The act sought to reinstil this trust.
The impact on IT groups? IT leaders of the day were challenged with reimagining their systems to meet the new controls and record retention requirements. Like any major regulatory change, the murmurs of the day centered cost and resources needed to implement the changes for both corporations and independent audit firms. What follows are a few ways that the regulations impact data management and record retention.
For corporations, sections 103 and 104 require companies to retain records related to audits of their financial statements for seven years. SOX section 404 requires companies to retain records that support their annual internal control report.
For auditors, section 802 requires them to keep records for seven years after concluding an audit or review. What type of records? Work papers and other documents that formed the basis of the audit or review plus memorandums, correspondence, communications, other documents and records (including electronic records) should be retained.
Data and Record Retention for Wealth Management Firms
Wealth management firms that manage over $110 million in client assets need to adhere to SEC rules for record management and retention. Unless they are in New York or Wyoming, those under that threshold need to consider their state’s rules. What follows is a summary of some essential data and record retention rules.
Most records need to be retained for at least 5 years, with at least 2 of the most recent years located in the adviser’s office (see Title 17 CFR Part 275.204-2). Types of records that need to be retained is extensive including customer records, advisor records, financial and transactional records, agreements, communications and promotional materials. As technology has advanced, even the communication through SaaS apps such as chat is at stake.
Data and Record Retention for Financial Dealers and Brokers
FINRA is the organization responsible for supervising broker-dealers and is overseen by the SEC. They also adopt rules to supplement those of the SEC, which include data and record retention rules.
Like wealth management firms, broker and dealer firms need to retain records for at least 6 years and need to have the last 2 years of records “easily accessible” with some exceptions. Generally, daily records and financial ledgers need to be retained for 6 years with some records, such as memorandums, only need to be kept for 3 years (see Title 17 CFR Part 240.17a).
Learn how to leverage native and third-party apps to meet your compliance, operational and business continuity goals
Like all platforms, your Salesforce instance is not immune to data loss. Many SaaS providers do not provide data recovery services. Currently, Salesforce falls into that group but has indicated that it will reintroduce a service during the summer of 2021. Under these conditions, what should companies do to ensure their Salesforce backups meet their compliance, operational and business continuity goals?
A Summary of Popular Salesforce Backup Methods
Notably missing from this list are data downloads. We’ve omitted this from the list since it will not capture metadata and it would be time consuming to use this method to download files and other assets.
What we are highlighting are these popular methods:
Copy your Salesforce production to a Salesforce sandbox
Backup Salesforce data using APIs
Backup Salesforce data to any contemporary on-premise database like SQL Server, DB2, Oracle, or a Big Data database, such as Mongo, Casandra, etc.
Use 3rd-party backup apps
Native Salesforce Data and Metadata Backup Options
Although Salesforce offers many native backup tools, they recommend looking at 3rd-party offering since: “Some of these are more comprehensive in that they allow you to automate backups of both your data AND your metadata and provide a mechanism by which to restore that data easily.”
3rd-Party Salesforce Data & Metadata Backup Options
While Salesforce provides its own (native) data export features to prevent permanent data loss, they also recommend customers use partner backup solutions. The main reason is that 3rd-party Salesforce backup options give users the features that make backups easier to manage. They can also make the process more reliable and secure.
What benefits are there to 3rd-party backup services?
Below is a summary of the benefit. Download our guide for more detail.
